Bottle-stopper



'UNiTnn STATES ritieni PATENT BOTTLE-STOPPER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 616,598, dated December27, 1898.

Application filed March 25,1898. Serial No. 675,062. (No model.)

.To r//ZZ whom it may concern/.-

le it known that I, Lnwrs H. BRoonE, a citizen of the United States,residing at Jersey City, in the county of Hudson and State of NewJersey, have invented an Improvement in Bottle-Stoppers, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This bottle-stopper is especially intended for holding down the disks ofthick paper or similar material that are extensively used for closingwidemouth bottles containing milk and similar materials. Under ordinarycircumstances the disks of paper or similar material have been sprunginto a groove around inside the neck of the bottle and a knife or otherimplement has been made use of in removing these disks, the intentionbeing to simply close the neck of the bottle and prevent the agitationconsequent upon transportation causing the contents to escape past thestopper of paper or similar material.

The object of the present invention is twot'oldefirst, to facilitate theinsertion or removal of the stopper or disk, and, second, to apply tothe same a slight pressure that aids in keeping the disk in position.lVith this object in view the disk or stopper rests upon a shoulder inthe neck of the bottle, and the fastener is provided with a wire havingends that project beyond the edges of the stopper, and these ends passinto a groove around within the bottle-neck and above the shoulder, andthe wire fastener is constructed in such a manner that upon swinging thefastener down adjacent to the surface of the stopper a pressure isapplied to such stopper, and when the fastener is swung up in theopposite direction the pressure is relieved and the fastener becomes ahandle for easily manipulating the stopper in either removing the sameor in reapplying it.

In the drawings, Figure l is a vertical section representing the stopperas introduced within the neck of the bottle. Fig. 2 is a similar viewwith the fastener swung down to tighten the stopper. Figs. 3, a, and 5represent modifications inthe shapes or configurav tions of the wirefastener' by sections and plan views, and Fig. G is a plan of the partsshown in llig. 2.

The bottle C is of any desired size or character, and it has aroundwithin the neck a shoulder at 5 of a size adapted to receive upon it thestopper A, of thick paper or other suitable material, and there is alsoaround within the neck the groove 3 of greater diA ameter than thestopper A, and there are one or more vertical notches d opening from thetop of the bottle down into the groove 3.

The fastener B is of wire, and the ends 6 of the wire project beyond theedges of the stopper A, and there is a loop at 7, forming a handle, andin order to connect the fastener-wire B to the stopper A loops of anydesired character are provided. The loops 2 (shown in Figs. l and 2) arein the form of staples,of wire or sheet metal,passing through thestopper and clenched on the under side, and the wire of the fastenerbetween the loops 2 and the ends 6 is so shaped that when the handleportion 7 of the fastener stands vertical, or nearly so, the endportions of the wire lie close upon the upper surface of the stopper A;but when the handle portion 7 of the fastener B is swung down the ends 6of the wire are raised above the surface of the stopper A and, actingwithin the groove 3, tend to force the stopper A down upon the shoulders5.

I prefer to make the loops or staples 2 sufficiently long to allow thefastener-wire B to rise inside the loops or staples 2 slightly as thehandle portion 7 of the fastener is turned down against the top surfaceof the stopper and to make in the wire of the fastener doublecompound-curved bends, as shown at 9, and these are inv a planeapproximately at right angles to the handle portion 7 of the fastening,so that when such handle portion 7 is turned down at either side andinto contact with the upper surface of the stopper, two of thecompound-curved bends, acting upon the surface of the stopper A, raisethe ends of such stopper-wire until they come into contact with theupper surface of the groove 3, and the further movement causes apressure to be applied to the stopper to hold it into place.

It is to be understood that in applying this stopper to the bottle, il'there are two notches Ll, the ends of the fastening B pass down thesenotches as the stopper is introduced into po-v sition; but if there isbut one notch L one end of the wire fastening B is to be intro ducedinto the groove 3 and the other end passed down the notch 4, and then apartial turn is given to the fastener and stopper to bring the end G ofthe wire fastener into its proper position in the groove 3, and then thehandle portion 7 of the fastener is depressed to tighten the stopper inthe manner before mentioned. Bya reverse motion the stopper can beremoved with facility.

It will be apparent that the handle portion of the fastening may bedouble (see Fig. 4) and that the wire may receive bends in any desireddirection, so that the ends of the wire fastening are eccentric to theportions of the fastening that pass through the loop or loops 2 or tothe compound-curved projections of the wire, so that the eccentricity ofthe ends of the wire fastening effects the pressure upon the stopperwhen the fastening is swung upon its connecting-loops.

I have shown in Fig. 3 the loops 12 as made in the sheet material of thestopper, and in Fig. 4 I have shown one central loop 12 and two handleportions 17, by Which the parts are manipulated, and in Fig. 5 I haverepresented the fastening-wire as passing through two ears 10 cut andbent up from the sheet material of the stopper. lf these ears aresufficiently large,they may be used as handles for the stopper.

I do not limit myself to any particular material of which the stoppermay be composed, as it may be thick paper rendered waterproof byparaffin or other similar substance, or the stopper may have an uppersurface of sheet metal and an under surface of paper or similar materialcaused to adhere to the metal plate of the stopper.

I do not claim the annular groove around within the neck of the bottlenor the notches 4o or recesses communicating with the same; neither do Iclaim applying pressure to the stopper by a turning device acting withinthe groove and pressing upon the stopper.

I claim as my invention- 1. The combination with the removable stopperof a fastening formed of a wire passing across the stopper and connectedtherewith by loops, the wire being bent to form a handle portion, andthe ends of the wire projecting beyond the edges of the stopper andeccentric, and a bottle having a groove Within the neck and a shoulderupon which the stopper rests, whereby pressure is applied to the stopperby the eccentric ends of the fastening when such fastening is turneddown toward the stopper, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination with the bottle having a groove around the neck and ashoulder, of a stopper to rest onthe shoulder, a wire fastening passingacross the stopper and having projecting ends to engage the groove,bends in the wire whereby the ends of such wire are rendered eccentric,a handle portion upon the wire and loops for connecting the wirefastening to the stopper, whereby the stopper can be handled by thefastening and pressure is applied to the stopper by the eccentricity ofthe projecting ends when the fastening is swung within the loop or loopsconnecting the same to the stopper, substantially as set forth.

Signed by ine this 23d day of March, 1898.

p L. H. BROOME. Witnesses:

GEO. T. PINCKNEY, S. T. HAVILAND.

